


Rainy Day Baking

by Takaska



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: I imagine Julian doesnt know how to cook anything more complex than coffee tbh, Other, Very light domestic scene based on a conversation, also partway through I realized I had forgotten that I- like Julian- dont know how to bake, so I hope it comes out alright
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-21
Updated: 2018-02-21
Packaged: 2019-03-22 00:50:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13752777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Takaska/pseuds/Takaska
Summary: You planned to teach Julian how to make snickerdoodles, and you both flirt the whole time.





	Rainy Day Baking

The sky was a darkening grey, raining softly but promising to swell into a storm within a few hours, if the very distant thunder was a sign.

You were almost regretting inviting Julian over for a baking lesson today, thinking of him braving the cold and wet for the trek to the shop. Rain was nice to listen to, and definitely important, but no fun to walk for a long time in.

A quick three knocks on the door had you rushing to it, eager to pull him in and get him out of the rain as soon as you could.

“Julian! Come in, come in,” you said, ushering him through the door before fighting the growing wind to close it again. “If I had known it would rain, I would have postponed our baking…”

“I wouldn’t have,” he chuckled, removing his cape and jacket to hang them up near the hearth to dry. “What better way to spend a rainy day than learning something new? And of course, spending time with you,”

You rolled your eyes and smiled as he winked at you, moving back into the kitchen.

“Flatterer. You can’t bake just by telling the cookies how pretty they are,”

“I assure you I would have an easier time getting them to bake that way than if I tried it normally on my own,”

“I _ still  _ can’t believe you  _ never  _ learned to cook anything, Julian,” you sighed, pulling out the mixing bowls and pans.

“Yes, well, it wasn’t for lack of  _ trying,  _ I just never was very good at it,” Julian shrugged, slowly pulling off his gloves. “At least with your snickerdoodles, you can tell me if I’m doing something very, very wrong before I burn the shop down… Do you need help?”

You stopped on your tiptoes, reaching for the cinnamon. It was about eye level to Julian, in the very back corner of the shelf, and just out of your reach.

“... Maybe. Please. Can you grab the cinnamon, the salt, and the flour?”

“Of course,” he chuckled quietly, reaching for them all with ease.

As you turn away, the murderer’s brand on the back of his hand catches your eye. Even after the name-clearing events of the past few months, he hadn’t been fond of being gloveless around most people. It hadn’t bothered you the first time you saw it, and didn’t bother you as you grabbed the eggs, but it made you happy that he was more open around you.

“Alright, we have all our ingredients,” you said as he set the sacks next to the bowls. “First we mix the flour, baking soda, salt, and cream of tartar. Help me measure, will you?”

With Julian as an extra set of hands, it went smooth enough, and the bowl was set to the side.

“This bit I think is where you’ll shine- we have to cream the butter and sugar, and mix in the eggs. You work with your hands all the time so it shouldn’t be an issue hmm?” you smiled, pouring the measured sugar into the new bowl.

“I think you know well enough how good I am with my hands,” he responded, wagging his eyebrows.

“Maybe I need a refresher?” you snagged his hand and kissed the back of it before pressing it to the side of the bowl. You couldn’t help but giggle when his face flared red at the contact.

“Well… I suppose a reminder won’t hurt… and maybe once these are done, I can prove it further? Rub your shoulders as payment for the baking lessons?”

“Oh, now you’re speaking my language,” you smiled, cracking an egg into the bowl while Julian paused for it.

“Well, I should hope I speak  _ one _ of them well enough, else you’re very good at charades,” 

“This coming from the man who speaks, what, a thousand languages?”

“Just seven! It’s bound to happen when you travel as much as I have,”

_ “Just  _ seven he says,” you scoffed, smiling as you cracked the other egg.

“Nadia speaks  _ twelve!  _ More fluently than I can,” he said with mock hurt.

“And I’ll never understand how you two can keep all of that straight in your head. I only know a little in one or two other languages, not nearly all that I’ve heard you speak,”

“Practice, darling. All the best skills are practiced, no?” he smiled at you, adjusting the angle of the bowl.

“I suppose I can’t disagree when I’m helping you practice baking hm?”

“I suppose not,”

A crack of lightning briefly lit up the sky, followed a second later by the rolling thunder. As you grabbed the bowl of dry ingredients you looked out the window to see it pouring much, much harder than when Julian arrived.

“Good thing you’re not out there still. It looks like it’ll be a long, heavy storm tonight,” you muttered, slowly adding the dry ingredients to Julian’s bowl as he mixed slowly.

“Oh no, are you suggesting I’ll have to… spend the night?” he gasped in mock horror.

“I’m afraid so,” you responded in equally dramatic seriousness. “You’ll have to help me eat the snickerdoodles and… dare I say? Keep me warm near the fire?”

Julian chuckled, face flushing bright red. “Well, if I  _ must…  _ There’s much, much worse ways to spend a rainy evening than with delicious cookies and equally delicious company,”

Now you felt a flush of your own growing, though not quite as strong as Julian’s. He had always been more prone to blushing than most people, after all- practically mastered the art. Another flash of lightning and slowly rumbling thunder resonated in your chest.

“This dough looks just fine now, Julian. We can wash our hands, and start to make them into little balls and roll them in the cinnamon sugar,” you said after a moment, pulling over the pans and small bowl before heading to the sink.

Just as you were going to turn around, arms snaked around your waist and you felt Julian press a kiss to the top of your head.

“Thank you again, darling. I’m much happier being here than just sitting at the Rowdy Raven or something like that, you know?”

“Even with all the salty bitters you can stomach?” you smirked, twisting in his arms and giving his cheek a quick peck.

_ “Especially  _ with all the salty bitters. I prefer you and your snickerdoodles any day,” he laughed, pressing his lips to yours for a second before moving back to wash his hands of the bits of flour and butter specks.

“Good. Glad to know I can keep you around with the power of baking,”

“And the power of your innate charm,”

“Flatterer,” you responded in a sing-song tone as you began pulling out a bit of dough and rolling it between your palms. After a moment, it was rolled liberally in the cinnamon-sugar mix and placed on a pan.

A roll of thunder and one more moment later, Julian was at your side, and the two of you fell into a quiet rhythm of rolling the dough, every so often bumping your hip against him just for the playful contact.

You wound up with about three dozen cookies in three different pans- all the ones you and Asra had to spare. 

“Alright, so these will go in the stove now,” you said, picking a pan up in one hand while you opened the stove with the other. “They only need to bake for about ten minutes, so we should stay in the kitchen just in case,”

“Sounds fine by me,” Julian said, placing the other two pans on different racks before closing the stove door and turning back to you, cocking an eyebrow before turning his tone more sultry and continuing, “And what did you have in mind for us to do while they bake, and cool?”

You giggled and sidled up to him, wrapping your arms around his waist. “Now doctor, I think you and I can come up with something entertaining. For now, since we don’t have much time before they come out, maybe you can provide that shoulder rub?”

“Of course, darling, go, sit,” he said, leaning down to kiss the top of your head again. “You said you needed a… refresher, of how good I am with my hands, no? Maybe I can spend this rainy night reminding you…”


End file.
